80 THE WHEAT CULTUKIST. 



INTRODUCTION OF ITALIAN WHEAT. 



In the volume of Transactions of the New York State 

 Agricultural Society for 1841, Jay Hatheway, Oneida 

 County, New York, has recorded facts touching the 

 introduction of this variety of wheat, from which the 

 following extracts are taken : " The Italian spring wheat 

 possesses a property which no other variety of this kind 

 of grain can claim that of growing well and yielding 

 a fair crop of grain upon land so poor, that no other 

 variety will succeed satisfactorily. On inferior land, 

 twelve to fifteen bushels of good grain have been grown 

 per acre. On good ground, thirty bushels per acre have 

 been grown ; and on the best wheat land the yield has 

 reached from forty to fifty bushels per acre. The orig- 

 inal seed weighed sixty-three pounds per bushel ; and the 

 first crop was sown in this country in 1832. 



" This kind of wheat has a bright lemon-colored straw, 

 which gives the entire crop a beautiful appearance when 

 the wheat is growing. The kernels have a thin skin of 

 a bright brown color ; and from a given quantity of 

 grain, more flour may be obtained than from any other 

 kind of grain grown in this country. The flour makes 

 excellent bread ; and some have stated that flour made 

 of this kind of wheat contains more gluten than other 

 kinds of flour. It is said that in Italy the manufac- 

 turers of macaroni prefer this kind of wheat for making 

 this article of food. 



" This kind of wheat was first introduced into this 

 country by a gentleman from Florence, in Italy, who, 

 marrying contrary to the wishes of his father, was 

 denounced and disinherited ; and smarting under the 

 severity and reproaches of an incensed parent, he re- 



